


The Urge To Run Away

by ChEVAl, napandasandwich



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist - All Media Types, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: Cannibalism, F/F, Gen, Graphic Description of Corpses, Implied/Referenced Sexual Assault, Kidnapping, M/M, Misgendering, Multi, Past Sexual Assault, Transphobia, death of background oc, greed and roy is not a romantic thing, i promise this fic won't be as miserable as it sounds, ill leave it at that for now, tags will be added as necessary BUT please keep an eye on them with each update, theres gonna be.....a lot of not so happy stuff, they just flirt and eventually fuck you know how it is
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-21
Updated: 2019-04-09
Packaged: 2019-09-24 09:28:19
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,181
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17098010
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChEVAl/pseuds/ChEVAl, https://archiveofourown.org/users/napandasandwich/pseuds/napandasandwich
Summary: Canon divergent timeline: Greed never left Father, and Roy makes a mistake.





	1. One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There's something else down there this time.

 

As a whole Greed was really very peaceful with his siblings, his relationship with them amicable and playful majority of the time, occasionally marred by spats with Envy that would end with them both bloodied but overall no longer frustrated with each other.

 

Pride was standoffish and aloof, Sloth was practically nonexistent in his life and Wrath was even less fun to be around than their Beloved Father, but if he was honest with himself they weren't really the ones that came to his mind when he thought of his siblings.

 

In fact, of all of them, Gluttony and Lust were by far his favourites. Gluttony was simple, and well meaning, and as fun to bat around like a toy as he was to coddle like the soft little baby brother he was. Lust was supportive, reassuring and always had a sardonic word or two that made him laugh- it was astounding that he could find comfort among any of his siblings at all, and yet somehow Lust provided both emotionally and physically. He supposed that was a trademark of lust; anything that made him long for her presence meant she was doing what she was designed to do. 

 

Which is why, looking at the rubble, the shattered walls, the decidedly unwanted skylight that now existed -deeply offensively- in his sewer, he couldn't help but feel a touch betrayed. Lust and Gluttony had gone after that Ishvalan that was getting Father's robes in a twist and they'd let him absolutely trash the place. Greed was distraught; even with Father's influence in the military, the fact that the Ishvalan was still missing meant that repairs would take even longer to dish out.

 

But even bad news comes with happy linings, the homunculus found himself thinking watching the military personal scramble in and around the rubble from his spot just a touch too far into the dark for them to see him back.

 

Really, he had to stay here to ensure that none of his chimeras swarmed the men- it'd draw immediate attention to the goings on under Central- but getting to watch them in their work was a treat and a bonus. Something about them was so appealing, so endearing, so pretty.

 

He knew the feeling; it seemed another human was needed for him to scratch this itch.

 

So he spent much of the midday watching them, waiting, lurking out of sight for one to wander away from the rest- and wander one did, apparently 'scouting ahead' for anything suspicious.

 

Greed backed deeper into the sewer and let the soldier follow him blindly. Dusty brown hair, green eyes. A bit of a baby face perched over a body that was miles from juvenile.

 

Greed liked him already, and couldn't wait until they were close enough for him to get a name off that shiny blue uniform.

 

~~~~~

 

Private Abrams was just trying to do his damned job. He didn't want it- sewer duty predictably stank, and the place was as creepy as it was dank. This was an MP's job, not a soldier’s. But rumor had it that the Alchemist Killer had been involved with this, so of course it had to be co-opted under Colonel-Fucking-Horsecock's orders.

 

But whatever. At least it wasn't a dangerous assignment, since anyone with half a brain could tell the Alchemist Killer was long gone from the area or dead under their feet.

 

It's a pity he was so casual about it all, because wandering deeper into the dark with his lantern to scout ahead it was really the last thoughts he'd have before getting slammed into with the force of a small car.

 

He let out a yelp before blacking out completely.

 

~~~~~

 

"Shit."

 

He'd hit the poor bastard too hard; the soldier's head had cracked against the cement, and the human was out cold.

 

Easier for keeping him quiet, but it was going to be a hassle later. Greed somehow doubted Elain had the tools - or the willingness- to treat a headwound that bad. Worse, now there was blood in the air.

 

His chimera shifted nearby, suddenly more curious about the invader.

 

He hefted the man up on his shoulders, and began heading deeper into the sewer, toward his Collection. The chimera slunk around and behind him, feigning innocent curiosity over the new, bloodied human their leader was taking this time.

 

~~~~~

 

  
The Private sent to scout beyond the blasted area of the sewer had missed giving his all-clear signal for the last three minutes.

 

They had all been briefed that the Alchemist Killer could still be nearby, but the Privates had been distracted from that by the stink and the care it took to navigate the unstable rubble.

 

Roy stared into the shadows. He'd hoped he'd be able to sense the alchemical discharge of one of Scar's attacks if it happened close by, but if he was wrong then a soldier under him had already died today. He wouldn't risk another.

 

Roy thought over his options. The proper thing to do would be to pass orders down to assemble a group to try to find Private Abrams. But because this was part of the Scar investigations, he was the only alchemist on site, and he still thought he'd have a better chance against the Killer than a regular soldier.

 

Of course, the fact that this was the Alchemist Killer was all the more reason to say within reach of daylight, protected by the soldiers sent specifically to guard him.

 

Staring down into the darkness, a flicker of movement caught his eye. It was nothing more than shadows sliding across one another, but Roy was squinting down the tunnel nonetheless. It was probably just his imagination.

 

The movement came again. Although he couldn't judge distance well in the dark, it seemed close.

 

Roy looked to see if anyone was watching him. He would just quickly check where he'd seen the movement and be back before anyone noticed he'd slipped away. And he'd be able to get their attention in a literal flash if anything was wrong.

 

The voice in the back of his head sounded an awful lot like Hawkeye, and right now it was saying his name that specific way she did when he was about to be stupid.

 

He moved carefully out of the light.

 

~~~~~

 

Call it premonition -call it a better sense of smell than any human would ever manage- call it the noticeable, antsy shift in the demeanor of his more sensitive chimera- Greed knew that someone was following them.

 

He halted, immediate and still, and looked back- seeing nothing.

 

They were still a ways back, then.

 

Against his better, smarter judgement, he put the soldier down, tucking him in slightly into a niche off the path. At least from a distance back, he would not be noticeable in that spot.

 

Greed sighed; he weighed his options for a moment, and shrugged.

 

He'd just use one of the side-paths to loop back a ways, and see whoever was following them from behind, then determine what to do from there. Easy.

 

He told his chimera to stand by, and did just that.

  
~~~~~

 

Private Abrams would never awaken again.

 

Not from head injury- indeed, that might've been treatable.

 

But being torn apart by a bear-wolf chimera while unconscious and incapable of even trying to fight back was not a survivable event.

 

Greed had neglected to make it clear to all of the pack that the human in the corner was not there for a snack, and one had decided it was worth the risk to give in to temptation.

 

~~~~~

 

That was.  
Absolutely.  
_Without a doubt._

 

Some kind important military man.

 

Greed could tell even from behind; the way he held himself, the determination in his shoulders and stance. He had to get back to his soldier immediately and pull him in deeper, find somewhere to hide the whole pack more effectively with him and hope the Big Guy would pass through without noticing.

 

Unfortunately for Greed his return to the niche he'd tucked his soldier was met with tucked tails and whimpering, no soldier in sight, and a massive red streak of a bloody trail leading deeper into the sewer.

 

Dammit.

 

Fucking shit fuck dammit one of the little pissheads had decided to act out.

 

He bit back his anger for now and skulked after the stray down the trail; it'd get it's punishment once he caught up, no need to blow that anger before he even got there.

 

~~~~~

 

There was definitely something further down the tunnel. He could just barely see it, moving away ahead of him as he moved forward.

 

It was cool and damp down in the sewers proper, the temperature change noticeable the moment he'd left the light (only a minute ago, his internal sense of time told him, so they wouldn't miss him yet, assuming that he'd gone to the surface for fresh air). The stench was stronger too.

 

As much as he wanted to cover his face, Roy kept breathing carefully through his nose. There could be gas pockets, invisible danger that could either change the reactions of his alchemy or make him fall unconscious in a matter of minutes, and he had to be careful. He kept an eye on his lantern too, watching for the flames to change color or flicker in the presence of foul air.

 

He hoped that was what had happened to Abrams. He hoped that it would be as simple as finding the Private slumped over somewhere down the tunnel and bringing him back out into the light.

 

Because of the stink, Roy stepped in the blood before he smelled it.

 

His shoe slipped strangely against the filthy stone floor or he might not even have noticed that the part of the tunnel he'd come to, the part where he'd first seen the movement, was dark with gore.

 

As Roy raised his lantern, he caught catch a whiff of the distinctive smell of recent, body rending violence. The floor under him was covered in blood, and there was a trail of more blood cutting through the slime, marking a clear path where something had been dragged further down the tunnel.

 

Heart pounding in his throat, Roy took a step back. He needed to get back to the men, he needed to bring a party down here after all, because this…

 

Whatever had killed Abrams -and the man was certainly dead, from the sheer amount of blood on the floor- wasn’t Scar. Something else had. And it was still down here, somewhere down in the dark with him.

 

As he turned to move back up the tunnel, something hit him from the side with enough force to knock him over.

 

Roy went down hard. The lantern spun off a little ways down the tunnel, and he barely caught himself on his hands, his gloves skidding through the wet grime on the floor...

 

_His gloves._

 

~~~~~

 

By the time Greed caught up with his rogue chimera, the soldier was most near ripped in half, head missing; no longer containing his anger or even pretending to be calm, the homunculus lashed out at the offending chimera.

 

The bear-wolf yelped, a horribly loud sound that echoed down the sewer- but not unwarranted; Greed had ripped one of its ears clean off, and it now backed away rapidly to begin attempting to nurse its wound. Greed growled after it, a low threat that made his irritation even more clear, but otherwise let the rogue chimera have its space, its lesson now learned.

 

With a huff, the homunculus indicated to the other chimera that they could have at the body- it wasn't them who'd broken his rules, so they were allowed a treat out of the body that was now useless and uninteresting to him- aside from the small scrap he'd pulled off for himself.

 

Taking a moment, he looked back down the tunnel. In all the commotion, he was certain he'd heard....something.

 

Two chimera following doggedly after him, he began to saunter back down the blood trail, wondering if they'd continued to be followed, as he idly chewed.

 

~~~~~

 

His gloves were soaked.

 

Not only were they useless to him now, but coated in blood and grime as they were even if he could dry them...

 

He didn't have time to think, because whatever had knocked him over was coming again.

 

Unable to get a look at it, not with the light gone, but whatever it was was also moving fast. It slammed him down to the ground a second time, and only Roy's instinct to roll out of the way kept his legs from being crushed as the thing tried for him a third time.

 

As it came for him again and as he again dodged it, a horrible squealing cry rang out farther down the tunnel.

 

Roy had never heard anything like that noise before, but it was obvious that whatever it was was in pain. And although it was hard to tell from the way the echoes bounced down in the sewer, it sounded... close.

 

The thing in the tunnel with him froze when the awful cry rang out, and Roy scrambled away from it, trying to get to his feet or at least towards the lamp. He recognized dimly that he was headed away from his soldiers, toward the source of the noise, but he didn't have the time to care.

 

Something that felt like a hand grabbed his ankle.

 

Roy screamed.

 

~~~~~

 

There was another human.

 

The big-important-guy, if Greed was willing to bet. Which he was. Because he was right, and he knew it.

 

He wasn't more than a few meters away from the man before one of his chimera- some sort of ape-deer, not one of the big meat eaters if Greed recalled correctly- had grabbed him by the leg, eliciting a scream.

 

Luckily it'd be easy to coax this one to let go.

 

He sped up his pace just a touch to cross the final few meters, and made a shrill whistle to get the chimera's attention. "Drop it."

 

The chimera released immediately- and Greed simultaneously reached out and grabbed the man by the front of the coat in the process. He took a moment to take another bite of the snack he'd brought with him before looking this important-military-man in the eyes.

 

"Hello, beautiful."

 

~~~~~

 

After he'd screamed once, Roy threw all his energy into trying to wrestle out of the grip on his leg. He had to get away, the blood and the more horrible wet things on the floor told every one of his instincts that he wasn't going to survive getting dragged further down the tunnel. He tried to kick and thrash, but the grip just got tighter.

 

In the dark he couldn't even see what he was fighting against, the hysteria of childhood nightmares, a type of fear he had not felt since completing his military training, welling up inside him.

 

He was going to die down here, if he couldn't get away.

 

Hawkeye would be so disappointed.

 

His own heart pounding in his ears and the horrible wet scuffling sounds as he wrestled with the thing holding his leg meant he didn't hear the footsteps approaching, didn't even notice the figure until a whistle sounded in the air.

 

The grip on his ankle released immediately, and Roy looked up. There was a man silhouetted against the lamplight, and before Roy could see more than that, there was a hand hauling him to his feet.

 

He felt something like relief course through him.

 

The feeling was short-lived, as the figure brought an obviously bloody hand up and took a bite from something that looked like raw meat.

 

Roy thought of the blood, of the more unpleasant things on the floor, of Abrams. He tried to breathe in, but the wind that had been knocked out of him when that _thing_ had lunged at him in the dark hadn't returned yet.

 

As he noticed that the man was holding his whole body weight up with just one hand, the stranger cocked his head and smiled, showing teeth far too sharp to be human.

 

"Hello, beautiful."

 

Roy wanted to scream again, tried to, but couldn't get a full breathe. The expression of the creature in front of him was relaxed, even friendly, but Roy Mustang had never felt more afraid in his life.

 

Roy was still gasping for air, for some understanding of what was going on, as his focus narrowed on the sharp teeth and his vision faded to black.

 

~~~~~

 

And there he went; the man was completely limp in Greed's grip, and he lowered the new -better- soldier a bit in order to let his arm rest and compensate for the now dead weight.

 

He'd gotten unlucky with the first man- but as usual, it was just a touch of misfortune before finding the _real_ treasure.

 

Greed had no idea of what this man's rank was- he knew it was high and probably meant something, but it was largely meaningless to him- but that didn't change the fact that he'd lost a subpar human only to easily and effortlessly gain a nice, new, fancier one - things he told himself to lessen the sting. He could have purred about it.

 

The homunculus swallowed down the rest of his impromptu snack and went ahead and threw this new human over his shoulders, once again heading towards his Collection- and this time confident he wasn't going to be followed or interrupted. He passed the now stripped clean corpse, and the sulking bear-wolf (which he gave another stern look for good measure), and continued on his way.

 

Nikita was going to flip.

 

~~~~~

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chev: Title is a lyric from Breezeblocks by Alt-J because this is That kind of fic.
> 
> Going to be a multi-chaptered fiasco! Adapted from an RP with my boyfriend who is listed as co-author; keep a close eye on the tags as later chapters will require really specific content warnings, a lot of things are going to get messy.
> 
> Though like I said it will not be as miserable as it sounds; despite the fic content we didn't want to stray too far from the canon tone.
> 
> Sandwich: Hey all! Please buckle up for this one and pay better attention to the tags as we update than Roy does to his good sense! Like Chev said, things are going to get even messier than poor Abrams, and this will be quite a long fic, we have a lot of material already and don't know how much longer it's going to get. We do know where we're going though. Please enjoy!


	2. Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An introduction of many OCs.

Nikita did, indeed, flip, when her now familiar captor wedged its way into the room.

 

At first she thought it odd that it was moving so awkwardly before she saw it'd gotten a hold of another victim.

 

Her heart fell for a brief moment in sympathy before she steeled herself back to her usual bravado in the face of Greed. "You keep doing this, don't you."

 

It paused halfway through the door, blinked, and made its way all the way in and plopped the newest victim on the ground before answering. She heard the beasts growl and writhe on the other side of the door, perhaps hoping the new victim was a meal for them and not another of their master's toys.

 

"Yes, I do." It stated matter of factly, same benign-uncomfortably disarming- grin on its face as usual. That grin even reached its eyes; it was the sincerity of it that always made it so disquieting.

 

"You know what I mean."

 

"I don't."

 

She paused. It was always like this. Confused in a way no human being should be. "You cannot keep dragging people down here to hoard, Greed."

 

A cock of the head. "But I am."

 

She sighed, and flinched as it reached over and pat her head in what was likely intended as affection. Elain coughed from the corner, and it nodded to her in greeting but otherwise held its tongue to her in the same way she did to everyone but Nikita.

 

"He's not hurt, I don't think, nothing drastic." It began, as it ruffled through the man's- a soldier, it suddenly hit Nikita- clothes.

 

"He doesn't have a gun on him; that's weird for soldiers, right? No knives or nothing either." It looked over at her as if expecting a genuine explanation.

 

She conceded. "It is weird."

 

 _He's an alchemist or an idiot,_ she thought to herself.

 

One of those would be a godsend.

 

"I gotta double back, make sure no one else followed. There's a lot of soldiers out in the sewers; apparently they're chasing some convict. I wouldn't scream-" It cut her off. "They wouldn't hear you. The walls here are thick and we're far past the sewer part of the underground."

 

It paused a moment, contemplative. "Also, you'd scare Elain."

 

Elain, for her part, ignored it.

 

"She doesn't like screaming, makes her head go bad for a while."

 

Elain continued ignoring it. Greed smiled again, gentler, as if being ignored was a gesture of utmost fondness from her.

 

It stood, stretched, and that horrible blue-black of its true hide crawled halfway up its arms, claws at the ready. Nikita had no wonders about what might happen to anyone Greed encountered in the sewer again, and it headed back out the door.

 

Once alone- alone-alone, most of the chimera aside from the usual few guards outside gone as well- Nikita moved over to the unconscious soldier to give him a one over herself.

 

"What's his rank?" Called Stieg through the partition. "It's weird as hell for him not to have gun on him, assuming Greed wasn't just being an oblivious moron."

 

"I'm trying to find that out right now, asswipe." She snapped back at him, flipping the soldier over to get a look at his uniform.

 

Colonel. Her heart nearly stopped, but she bit down the excitement to force herself to learn more.

 

Badge: Roy Mustang

 

She was sweating, feeling her breath coming short and fast as she searched his pockets- and pulling out the iconic silver pocket watch that confirmed everything.

 

Greed had somehow dragged the Hero of Ishval into its hell-den of a collection, and she was, in that moment, convinced they were all finally saved.

 

~~~~~

 

Roy didn't know where he was when he woke. It was bright enough that he closed his eyes immediately, head pounding.

 

He felt disoriented, his mouth was dry, and he couldn't remember where he'd been the night before. Had he been drinking? The thought wandered vaguely through his mind as consciousness slowly returned.

 

Suddenly the memory of the tunnel returned, and he startled upright. That thing could still be somewhere close by...

 

Or tried to. The left side of his ribcage flared with pain, and the movement made him freeze immediately, too unsure of his circumstances to allow himself to cry out. So he lay still, breathing slowly, and opened his eyes a second time.

 

Wherever he was, there was electric lighting. And as his eyes cleared, he saw a woman in uniform leaning over where he was apparently lying down on a (dry) surface, probably a floor. She was watching him with a strange, intent expression, her expression wary but her eyes bright.

 

Hope kindled in him, the wild idea that maybe he'd already been saved.

 

But she wasn't medical personnel, he saw as he looked closer. In fact... something was wrong. Her uniform was faded, and now he could see that it was also tattered and torn. In fact, while she appeared clean, she looked distinctly ragged around the edges in spite of the clear military bearing of her posture.

 

Finally she nodded at him, still the strange combination of stiff and utterly focused.

 

"Colonel."

 

In spite of the surreal situation, he nodded as best he could from the floor.

 

"Your name, soldier?"

 

Finally she stood, snapping to attention.

 

"Private Muller first class, sir!"

 

Well this was at least something. Wherever he was and whatever was going on, he at least wasn't alone or trapped with civilians.

 

"At ease, Private Muller. Now can you tell me what the hell is going on?"

 

~~~~~

 

Her entire body seemed to collapse on herself at the call for ease- though she still stood, it was hard to maintain the strict code of conduct she'd typically adhere to under different circumstances. Captivity was, unsurprisingly, a constant stress- and therefore a constant exhauster.

 

"We're under central, Sir, in an underground base of sorts that is immediately connected to the sewer." She paused and licked her lips, not really certain how to explain the rest of their predicament.

 

From the other side of the partition, Stieg peaked through and bark laughed at her. "So INCREDIBLY proper with the new Colonel, huh? You dropped formalities with me pretty fast, how long does he get the pleasure?"

 

Forgetting herself- and who she was in front of- for just a moment, Nikita whipped her head to the side and practically bared her teeth at him as she hissed out a retort. "You lost any chance you had at my respect and you know fucking well why, ranks be damned."

 

Her entire posture had tensed like a dog prepared to be struck, and she forced herself to relax one breath at a time. A shift in the corner told her that her brief explosion had startled Elain, who was now giving the partition window a dirty look.

 

A spark of guilt flickered through her, and she took a breath to steady before she began to address the Colonel on the floor once more.

 

"A....creature, only given alias 'Greed', has kept us trapped down here for a number of months. We seem to be part of some sort of project, or collection. Greed's intents are unclear."

 

Stieg wheezed again. "Oh I know some of its intents alright-"

 

"It has yet to act maliciously towards any of us." She cut Stieg off, "but it is completely and totally stalwart in remaining our captor and refusing us any escape from this room, Sir."

 

Briefly overwhelmed, her voice wavered slightly, tears threatening to come forth. "You're the first new person we've seen in four months, Sir. And the only one of us who might have any chance of getting us out."

 

~~~~~

 

As he often did, Roy fell back on his military training for outward calm as Muller explained where they were. Internally he could feel his own panic mounting. Held captive? And by _that_?

 

Roy took a moment to take stock of the new information, inwardly cursing his body for the pain that was keeping him from looking for the source of the man's voice on the other side of the wall.

 

So, there were other people down here with them. And they were all being held captive by whatever Roy had met down in the sewer before...

 

But Muller has also said that it wasn't malicious. Roy's mind flashed to the whistle, the order for whatever thing had been holding him to drop him. An order that had been instantly obeyed.

 

The sensation of the hand lifting him by the front of his jacket came back. That hand had been as strong as a vice, but the grip hadn't hurt. And he realized now, taking stock of the bruises and aches making themselves know all across his body from the fight in the tunnel, that this Greed hadn't seemed to have harmed him.

 

The Private was watching him as he thought, and he noticed she was swaying slightly on her feet.

 

"You can sit, Private. If we're in a hostage situation, there's no reason to tax yourself."

 

Muller lowered herself to the floor cautiously, never looking away from him, and Roy spared a thought for her wariness of him and the way she'd reacted to the -obviously rude- other man.

 

Once she was settled, he spoke again. "Now, who are the others down here? Besides this Greed."

 

~~~~~

 

The relaxing of order to let her sit was a massive relief- it meant he was more into practicality than formality, a good and reassuring sign, even if she wasn't keen on being trapped in a room with a man again.

 

Though, she tried to remind herself, surely Colonel Roy Mustang was more of a gentleman than Stieg was- and despite the reputation of being a womanizer, she'd never heard rumor that he was anything less than perfectly respectful to his many, many dates.

 

Not that that meant much deep in the dark and far out of the public eye. Stieg had once been a good friend; now he had to be on the other side of several inches of concrete.

 

Elain seemed to be staring hard in the direction of the room’s new occupant.

 

Nikita paused to gather her thoughts, and went about with introductions.

 

"As stated I'm Private Muller; Staff Sergeant Twardy is the man off to your left there, on the other side of the partition. He's there because-" She paused.

 

Stieg was silent on his end.

 

She figured she may as well be candid. "Staff Sergeant Twardy is on the other side of the partition due to severe sexual misconduct both towards myself and our civilian. Greed put him on that side as punishment. Greed doesn't like its things hurting each other." She said the last sentence somberly, looking Mustang dead in the eyes to make it clear to him as possible that they were like toys to the creature that kept them there.

 

She licked her lips- she was often dry mouthed, when nervous- and gestured vaguely to her left.

 

"Over there is our civilian, Elain. She's been here longer than either Twardy or I; we've both been here four months. We're fairly certain Elain was dragged down here summer of last year during the peak of the Chopper murders. We think that's why no one came looking for her- they assumed she was a victim of the Chopper."

 

Another pause. "With all due respect sir, please give Elain as much space as possible. She isn’t exceptionally sociable." She half-smiled, wry and sarcastic and not reaching the rest of her face at all. "And if you upset her enough, Greed will likely shove you in with Twardy."

 

That got a response out of Stieg, who briefly chortled out something that sounded vaguely like "Boys Night!" before transitioning into a coughing fit.

 

Not for the first time Nikita wondered if there was an issue with the air filtration on his side, as wheezing and coughing on his part was becoming more frequent.

 

~~~~~

 

_Greed doesn't like its things hurting each other._

 

Roy didn't miss the emphasis there, nor did he miss the implication. They were being kept as... pets, perhaps. Maybe more as toys. At least from what the Private was saying, he could feel reassured that their captor was concerned with their wellbeing in a general sense, if it cared enough to separate one of its violent toys from the others.

 

Roy nodded. So Twardy was the kind of superior officer who broke under pressure was he? And in the basest of ways. Roy decided then and there that, whatever became necessary for their escape, that he would see to it that Twardy was appropriately court-martialed.

 

Roy listened detachedly as Twardy descended into a coughing fit. That was a bad sound, he knew, although he didn't have the medical knowledge to know just how bad.

 

It was clear from what he could see of Muller, and hear of Twardy's cough that these people were in bad shape. Although the fact that they had held up for so long in captivity gave him some appreciation for their mental fortitude. Or, at least of the women's fortitude. It was clear that Twardy was either a weak man or a genuinely malignant one, and either way, he was beyond their cell, on the other side of the wall, and couldn't be much use to him except as a source of information.

 

Turning his attention back to Muller, he assessed her physical condition more closely. Although she seemed tired and hunched in on herself, it appeared she had made an effort to stay in shape while captive.

 

Good. They would need every advantage they could get if they were going to escape.

 

And they would need _every_ advantage, because there was a suspicion growing in Roy's mind.

 

No one was going to find them down here. Even if soldiers were sent after them, they would either be caught and added to the collection, or...

 

Roy thought of the smears on the sewer floor, and of whatever unknown thing had knocked him down.

 

He addressed Muller again.

 

"Private... What else is down here with us?"

 

~~~~~

 

He was planning- that was good. That was really good.

 

She crushed down the reminder that she and Twardy had tried to plan early on, too. And it'd gotten them nowhere but chased down and cornered by Greed at the second angriest she'd ever seen it- the most angry being when Greed had dragged Twardy kicking and screaming into the other side of the partition.

 

"Chimera." She paused, brow furrowed. "That's what they're called, right? Animals mixed together and turned into monsters with alchemy. The sewer is swarming with them."

 

"She's not kidding about that, they're everywhere." Stieg horsley chimed in, apparently trying to be assistive now.

 

She continued. "They all obey Greed, for the most part. Sometimes they can be disobedient but. Greed is their....pack leader. I think it’s a chimera too. Whatever it is, we also know there's more than one like Greed down here too. It talks about them- calls them siblings- and from what it says, Greed is practically a friendly lamb compared to them."

 

It was a thought that had crossed her mind many times, and sent chills every time. That Greed- a monster, amicability aside- all fangs and hard skin and lethal claw, eager and willing to tear and devour humans just like the swarm of beasts that followed it- Greed was the pleasant one of its siblings. It was the _friendly_ one.

 

Stieg interrupted her thoughts with another chuckle. "Now Colonel, Sir, if you want to know more about Greed specifically, I'm the one you should be asking. I know it better than either of those two."

 

~~~~~

 

Chimera.

 

Roy's blood ran cold. Alchemical creatures running amok in the sewers under the capitol. He'd seen a few, all of which were part of the military's advanced weapons research.

 

But those had been pitiful things. The largest had been the size of a mid-sized dog and, from what he had heard later, had died within a week. Stable chimera were much harder to create, but even an unstable wreck of a creature could be enough to squeeze more research grants out of the military budget...

 

Or it had been, before the Shou incident. Roy shivered minutely. A large chimera had gone missing from the crime scene that night, and Roy had privately assumed that it had gone off and died on its own. Or equally possible, had fallen prey to Scar.

 

Now though, now he wondered about that. A little girl fused with a family pet, alone and in pain. Such a creature would be easy prey for the beasts down here, unless...

 

His thoughts were wandering. He turned his focus back to Twardy, noting the change in the man's tone toward the cooperative.

 

Roy turned his head toward the partitioned wall and spoke in a hard tone. "Sergeant, I order you to report everything you know about the creature called Greed. Our lives depend on it."

 

~~~~~

 

Stieg pulled himself up to the window proper, now, and Nikita sneered at his smug face. He stuck an arm through the bars in a waved greeting, then looped it around one, as if to keep his balance against the window.

 

"Me and Greed, we've gotten really....friendly." He grinned. Nikita shivered- she already knew where this was going. It wasn't like it was possible to hide the sexual exploits he'd had with the creature- the partition was only so thick, and sex like that wasn't quiet.

 

"That is to say, for a whatever-the-fuck-it-is, it’s a pretty damn good lay. I've seen more of it than most, I'd bet." He laughed, again. "For starters, looks aside, it's actually female."

 

Oddly enough Elain seemed to shoot him a brief glare at that before going back to staring hard at her pillow. Nikita snapped back at him. "We've got oddballs like that up top too, but they can't exactly spill your belly without an ounce effort. You really like testing your limits with that thing."

 

Stieg shrugged. "Aside from that it’s strange- it’s not wearing a shirt, that's a part of its armor it never lets down, and-" He paused, and grinned. "Nikita didn't tell you about the armor. Our dear captor is indestructible, Colonel. It can coat itself in an impenetrable armor- some kind of diamond is my guess- and it all just seems to be a natural part of its hide. But that's not the worst of it."

 

He paused for dramatic effect; Nikita raised an eyebrow at him, not actually knowing what he was leading into. She knew about the armor; what else was there?

 

"Even if you get past the armor, it regenerates. I made a shiv a while back; tried to make a go at Greed during one of our altercations and got it damn good across the throat. Watched it stitch itself together again good as new right then and there, and it just seemed to make the nasty bitch excited. Looked like some kind of alchemy, too."

 

He took another breath, a long wheeze. Talking seemed to be taking a lot out of him. "There's another thing, that-"

 

The door opened, and Nikita felt her blood run ice cold.

 

Greed leaned against the frame, all loose muscle and coy grins, it seemed perfectly relaxed. "Good news," it spoke. "No followers; no mess. Just a few up and downs and it's all clear. You're stuck with me now."

 

It laughed- and if Stieg's laugh was an awful bark of a sound, Greed's was the sort that managed to sound sinister and inhuman even at its most gentle.

 

It looked down at the Colonel, and its grin grew even wider, its eyes taking on that familiar possessive sheen, horrible slit pupils widening in contained excitement.

 

"Hello again, beautiful. I hope you're not too scuffed up? I didn't get to see how much the pack roughed you up, and it's never a good time for any of us when there's severe damage to be tended to."

 

Elain, largely unnoticed at this point, had lied down on her cot, and hugged her pillow tight to her chest. No, it was never fun at all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again all! Sorry this took so long to roll out, our lives got very hectic for a good while (and are still hectic if I'm honest). But we're still very excited to get this fic out there. I love the OCs I made for this and have a lot of fun writing them. Worth noting in case it was not explicitly clear- Greed is a trans man (or at least, masc presenting NB) in this fic; and different characters tend to use different pronouns for him, so this changes with POV. Greed isn't particularly bothered by what anyone calls him, however.
> 
> \- Chev
> 
>  
> 
> What a year it's been so far... but please enjoy the new chapter!
> 
> -Sandwich


	3. Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A conversation with the impossible.

_Indestructible?_ And automatic regenerative alchemy... 

 

From what he knew of chimera, that wasn't something they were capable of. And an alchemical human was just a theory...

 

Roy didn't have time to process what he was hearing, as the door opened and he got a look at their captor for the first time.

Greed was broad-shouldered and obviously well-muscled, slouching against the doorframe and grinning. Once again Roy noticed the too-sharp teeth, but now he could see that, although it looked like human in most other respects, there was something about the eyes...

Roy realized with a start that they were returning his stare. 

 

Roy considered his options. The pain in his ribs was still acute when he moved, but it had faded enough that he suspected it was only pulled muscle and bruising. That at least would heal in a few days. Nothing else in his body was broadcasting pain, but...

He wondered if it would be wise to tell the creature he was more injured than he was, in case it might give him an edge later on. Unfortunately the reverse wasn't an option, since he was still injured badly enough that he wouldn't be able to conceal it...

Now, the other consideration. Would it be better to play meek, or to demand answers now? But Greed seemed to be in a good mood, and Roy didn't want to risk changing that.

 

Even if, according to Twardy, challenges to it's authority were met with a... playful response.

 

Roy looked up warily from his prone position the floor.

 

"My ribs seem to be injured from the... fall. But I don't know how badly."

 

For now he would give Greed short answers to its questions, and bide his time.

 

~~~~~

 

Greed's grin lessened just a touch; his mood wasn't really dampened, but that quiet ribbon of concerned laced its way into his heart.

 

Humans were fragile. He'd honestly assumed the man wouldn't be hurt in the least.

 

He took a step into the room, letting the door close naturally behind him, before moving over and squatting next to the human's side. It looked like he and Nikita had been talking, from how close she was and from how she now got up and moved over to her cot, as if repelled from Greed like a magnet.

 

The homunculus went ahead and gently pressed against his new human's ribs- where he'd indicated- with a hand. "Doesn't seem to have more give than usual, though I don't doubt this hurts."

 

He gave another firm- but gentle- press. "Don't think you've got anything broken, though really Elain would be the better judge of that."

 

Greed turned his head to look over to her, and she glared at him over her pillow. "I think she'd be more keen on helping if you were another lady, you poor bastard." He was still speaking to the man, despite looking at Elain with undisguised pleading in his eyes.

 

She looked away, and he sighed.

 

~~~~~

 

Roy wanted to protest when Greed squatted next to him, and almost did protest when Greed touched him.

 

Greed's touch was gentle, surprisingly so. The pressure of the hand on his side was also warm, in contrast to the chill of the floor that had seeped into him. Roy almost frowned, because it was  _ too _ warm. 

 

As if the eyes -which he could now see were purple and had a shocking slit pupil, like a cat's- and teeth weren't enough to make the point.

 

It did hurt, but the creature was right, there wasn't enough give -or enough pain- to indicate a break. Damn. He'd hoped to play the injury up a little, and hadn't counted on this thing to actually know how to check an injury.

 

As Greed looked off to the other side of the room, Roy looked it over more closely. Up close, its upper torso was covered in what looked like a tight black sleeveless shirt, but Roy noticed -perhaps because he knew to look- that the light shown on it strangely. The black coating -if that's what it was- disappeared under the black pants it was wearing, which strangely appeared to be military issue. 

 

Greed looked back down at him. "You want help sitting up or are you just the floor-human now?" 

 

Well. On the one hand, he would need help getting up. On the other, he wasn't certain he want Greed getting even closer.

 

Still. He might as well be cooperative for now. 

 

Roy Mustang, flat on his back, tried to summon what dignity he could, and addressed the impossible creature looking down at him. 

 

"Help me up, please."

 

~~~~~

 

Greed grinned again, a wider, real face-splitter this time. 

 

He now had his permission to touch the human properly. 

 

The homunculus bent slightly and grabbed the human as delicately as he could, lifting him upwards into a sitting position- and then lifting him entirely to move him over to the wall so he could lean against it. Greed got up, leaving the man behind, and grabbed a blanket and a few of the pillows left unclaimed before bringing them back over.

 

He practically straddled the man as he moved the human's head to allow him to place a pillow behind it. 

 

"Greed."

 

He slowed his propping of the pillow and cocked his head, still looking at the man, to indicate that he was listening to the woman behind him. 

 

Nikita's voice wavered as she spoke. "Are you alright?"

 

That was. A strange thing to hear from her. 

 

He didn't turn his attention from his new human, but his voice did little to hide his surprise. "Doll I'm fine, why're you asking?"

 

A pause. "No reason."

 

Definitely a reason. But he chose not to push. 

 

Instead he continued focusing on his new addition, glee practically radiating off of him over the new human.

 

~~~~~

 

Roy almost squawked in surprised. No one had picked him up so easily since Alex had made a show of tossing him around during their training days, and Greed, although muscular, was hardly a giant. This was obviously another inhuman trait, but it was the sensation that was so shocking. Greed was handing him like a doll, and still with the same jarring care as before.

 

The creature set him down carefully against the wall, and before Roy had time to be surprised, darted away for a moment and came back with... blankets and pillows, which like Muller's clothes, were worn but also clean.

 

Then Greed straddled him.

 

Suddenly that black-covered chest was much closer, and Roy could only stiffen in shock as Greed manhandled him. The creature was... tucking a pillow behind his head.

 

Up close, Greed was radiating heat. It was welcome, on a basic level, because his clothes were still partly wet from the fall and because of the chill he'd picked up from the floor. It was also hotter than even a feverish person would be, to the point where it was a wonder Greed's hands weren't almost uncomfortably hot through his jacket.

 

While Nikita spoke up from across the room, Greed kept tucking the blankets around Roy, looking him over in a strange way where it was never quite looking him in the eye. He was being examined, clearly, but not... somehow Greed wasn't watching him, merely looking him over carefully. The creature's obvious air of glee was unsettling, and would be outright sinister if the hands fixing the blankets around Roy weren't so strangely gentle.

 

As Greed answered Nikita casually (and her question and her tone had been strange enough that Roy filed it away for later), Roy returned the favor, noting what looked almost like tusks visible above Greed's bottom lip as it spoke. Roy thought again of what he'd seen in the tunnel, and held very still as Greed maneuvered him.

 

There were also red circles on Greed's upper chest, with lines leading up and over its shoulders, like some kind of stylized marking or design.

 

Something else red caught Roy's eye, and it took all his self-control not to startle, although he couldn't help but stare openly. There was a red tattoo on the back of Greed's hand.  _ It couldn't be. _

 

~~~~~

 

Greed noticed- smugly- that the human was examining him in turn. Curiosity was good; anything that was perky enough to be curious probably wasn't dying. 

 

He took his chance while the man was distracted to lean in a little closer, the straddle becoming almost outright sitting in the man's lap as he examined all the bits and bobbles on his jacket.

 

Military uniforms were so stylish and this one was so clearly fancy, it was a travesty it had so much muck on it. At least they had the sink.

 

His head moved up from the base of the jacket towards the top, slowly, examining and taking in every last badge, braid and chord, admiring the workmanship of it all. His eye caught the ID tag- Roy Mustang , now THAT was a name - and he glanced up at the man almost coyly before his next move. 

 

The homunculus, head now level with Roy's neck, buried his face in it in a motion that could almost be mistaken for an affectionate nuzzle. In part, it somewhat was- he was excited over his new human, and wanted that fondness to be known- but he was also making a point of taking in the man's scent. Clean, light use of generic-but not cheap- cologne.

 

The undertone of burning, and-

 

Greed stilled; stock still and unsettling unmoving. Most people, consciously or not, could recognize the smell of their parents- it was an innate, instinctual thing, brought on by animal sense and social bond.

 

Greed knew the exact scent of his Father; he'd never mistake it in his life.

 

And the same applied to his 'Mother'.

 

-Roy Mustang was pungent with the static, ozone smell of alchemy. 

 

He'd dragged an alchemist home, and this could be a problem.

 

Hearing Nikita shift uncomfortably behind him got him moving again- he was probably unsettling her- and he tried to distract himself immediately.

 

Greed lifted his head from Roy's neck, knowing full well his next statement was redundant but wanting to hear the man say it regardless. "I can't just keep calling you Beautiful, true as that is. What's your name, State Alchemist?"

 

~~~~~

 

Roy was too busy staring at the damned mark to catch it when Greed moved, but suddenly it was leaning in even closer, and it's body language had changed to unmistakeable playfulness. 

 

Roy held his breath as it looked over the front of his jacket. Greed was now close enough that Roy could smell it, some strange combination of human warmth and animal musk, underlaid with a rich scent like... blood. Roy's heart was beating faster, the animal instincts in him starting to overwhelm his control. His hands twitched in his damp and useless gloves, and he tried to calm the fear rising in him before it made him start to sweat.

 

As Greed looked over his badge, the creature looked up at him almost flirtatiously, and then moved forward unexpectedly.

 

Suddenly there was hot breath on Roy’s neck, and his skin prickled all over as Greed tucked its face into his neck.

 

Roy went stiff with shock. The radiating heat was even more intense now, although somehow still not to the point of discomfort, and... Greed's hair, surprisingly soft, brushed his jaw and neck, and from the feeling against his throat, Greed was... smelling him. 

 

Suddenly, Greed went still, and Roy ceased to breath. His heart was pounding, and suddenly all he could think of was those teeth, the meat, the blood on the floor of the tunnel...

 

Some part of him noticed Muller moving across the room, but Roy could barely spare a thought for anything but holding absolutely still.

 

Just as suddenly, Greed sat back, and looked at him with... a new expression. Not an unfriendly one, but where Greed had seemed almost simple before, it now seemed unsettlingly focused.

 

Roy's blood ran cold, and he choked momentarily on the breath he'd been taking. Greed was still so close, practically in his lap, and still all Roy could think of were those teeth. How had it known? How could it have possibly known, with his gloves so dirty the symbols were obscured? How?

 

And how much did Greed in fact know about the world above the surface? Enough to know about State Alchemists? And what else.

 

It was becoming clearer by the second that underestimating Greed would be a very dangerous thing indeed. His skin was still oversensitive from the breath on his throat, and his eyes tried again to stray down to the teeth.

 

His pulse still pounding, he forced himself to look Greed in the eyes and tried to keep his words as even as possible. 

 

"Roy Mustang. And who, exactly, are you?"

 

~~~~~

 

Greed's grin never faltered, though his face seemed to shift through a myriad of clear emotions with every thought. His expression was outright shrewd.

 

He licked his teeth briefly- not a threat of any sort, merely of tick of his that usually implied he was thinking- and he laughed a little.

 

Roy-boy was trying to play stern and tough but Greed could feel the man's heart going a mile a minute. The poor bastard was on the verge of pissing himself.

 

The homunculus decided to cut the pitiful man some slack, and leaned back a bit away from his chest- though still planted fairly solidly in his lap. 

 

He held out his hand- the left, always the left- amicably for a shake. "I'm Greed, exactly. And all that entails."

 

~~~~~

  
  


This creature was dangerous, and in more ways than the physical violence it was capable of, and Roy didn't like it when he couldn't tell what an obviously dangerous person was thinking. And in this moment Greed was reminding him of no less dangerous a man than the Fuehrer himself. 

 

Roy looked down at the -tattooed- hand cautiously for a moment, then back up at the creature in his lap.

 

"Forgive me, but..." He raised a gloved hand -with the palm upward, still concealing the circle on the back- to indicate the filth on it. He couldn't lean back with the wall behind him, but with luck Greed would give him the space to take them off... and hopefully set safely aside for now as well, because if the cloth in the cell was clean he still had a chance to get the gloves to a useable state again.

 

~~~~~

 

Greed made a short chuff of a laugh, and put his hand back down. "Polite, though I couldn't care less."

 

He finally moved off of the the man, standing to his full height and stepping away for a moment, though not at all breaking his gaze. "But I'll let you have your pride." Pride was important to humans; just like the rest of them wear. All the sins knew that, even if Father didn't.

 

He may as well be candid- he was, afterall, an honest man. 

 

"I don't like that you're an alchemist. It's a problem." His tone grew suddenly very cold, in a way that was highly uncommon for him.

 

"I like my things. I love my things; I'm Greed. I'm greedy. It's what I do." The cold tone held, as did his stare. "Please don't make me break your arms, alchemist. It's much nicer for the both of us if I can just keep you away from writing utensils- or for you to just behave."

 

Nikita genuinely gasped, startled. Elain's breathing stilled entirely.

 

It occurred to Greed that neither of them had ever heard him threaten bodily harm to one of his humans before. It also confirmed that Stieg hadn't told them about his legs.

 

Probably that pride, again.

The sins did come with some drawbacks afterall- but that was their nature, again, as sins.

 

~~~~~

 

The change in Greed's tone drained the warmth the creature had left behind, and Roy could feel the fine hairs on the back of his neck pricking.

 

Roy heard the women gasp at that. Faintly, he thought that it was at least it was good that Greed didn't make these displays often. 

 

He was trying to distract himself from the the thought that Greed would break his limbs as a matter of course. It was the tone that most disturbed him. Greed was clearly very serious, and it was a threat, but to hear it delivered so matter of factly, with no bluster...

 

Roy wondered again at Greed's obvious understanding of alchemy, the existence of state alchemists, and that strange surfacing with its stranger markings...

 

A homunculus.

 

Roy had gotten himself kidnapped by a homunculus, and as much as Roy wanted to believe it was a mad one...

 

Looking up at Greed, there was no mistaking the look in its eyes. It was, had been since he'd encountered it in the sewer, already several strategic steps ahead of him. 

 

The creature was waiting patiently for him to speak, looming over him in a way that Roy couldn't deny was intimidating, and again he felt the ghost of that hot breath on his throat.

 

He had to wet his lips before speaking. 

 

He hated to say it this way, it sounded childish, but now was not the time to be prideful. Now was the time to bide his time, and stay alive and whole until he could come up with something.

 

Roy looked up at Greed, expression still wary. "I'll behave myself."

 

~~~~~

 

The intensity melted off Greed and rolled off his person like shedding an old, uncomfortable skin and his disposition became noticeably friendly again in a matter of moments.

 

He didn't like having to get that serious; it scared his humans and he didn't like mistreating them.

 

The homunculus ignored the chewing at the back of his mind that said it upset him, too, to have to be cruel. 

 

"Atta boy. That's the smart decision. And what I'd expected from someone of you...ranking." He paused, and looked over his shoulder at Nikita. 

 

"What's his rank?"

 

Nikita was staring back him like she was seeing him for the first time, and he felt something in his stomach clench unhappily. He'd hurt one of his things again. 

 

She spoke nonetheless. "He's a Colonel." 

 

She didn't elaborate; she knew the term was meaningless to the homunculus.

 

"Right. Whatever." He responded, and tried to give her a smile that was as gentle as possible. His head ducked a little with the motion in a way that was almost bashful; everything in his body language, for a moment, was an apology, both to Nikita and to Elain, who he knew was watching closely from her place in the corner.

 

He turned his attention back to the Colonel, and sighed. "Sorry for getting rough, Mustang. But I'm not keen on the mayhem we both know you'd cause." 

 

That was false.

 

Greed had far more concept of how disastrous Roy could prove to be than Roy could even begin to conceptualize at the moment. 

 

Once again affectionate, he cupped Roy's cheek with his dominant hand and gave it a soft squeeze, smiling. "You've got that rank and a baby face that could rival Gluttony. It's cute."

 

He released the other man's face, and moved back to leave through the door. "I'll be back later with food. Be nice with the ladies, Mustang. They'll kill you if you're not."

 

He added the last part as a joke as he left, but Nikita probably wouldn't have denied it. And Elain would doubtlessly make good on it.

 

~~~~~

 

Watching the exchange between the two, Roy noticed that Greed knew enough to ask for his rank but clearly didn't know what that rank meant. Everything about its range of knowledge was only making Roy feel more confused. 

 

Greed turned its attention back to him, and sighed. 

 

Roy regarded it warily. Greed's apparent dislike of causing his captives harm would make it no less dangerous.

 

Greed was looming in his face again suddenly, and a too-warm hand cupped Roy's cheek... and squeezed it like older relative doting on a child.

 

The Flame Alchemist looked up at the monster before him, and tried not to snarl at being called "cute". 

 

Greed released him and finally moved away towards the door. "I'll be back later with food. Be nice with the ladies, Mustang. They'll kill you if you're not."

 

And it was gone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Roy's been laying down this whole time, and I'm having surgery in two days.  
> \- Chev
> 
>  
> 
> I would apologize for making Roy shatner so hard, but I checked and he really does do it. Silly dramatic man. Chev's having a thing this Friday (nothing dire!) so we'll get the next chapter to you when we can.  
> \- Sandwich


	4. Four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which everyone wishes Stieg would shut up.

As the door clicked closed, Roy slumped against the blankets.

 

With unsteady hands, his stripped off his gloves and set them carefully aside, using the familiar movements to try to collect himself. Unconsciously, the fingertips of one hand rubbed the place on his cheek Greed had touched, where once again the skin was still unusually warm.

 

His mind was spinning, fixating on one thing. A homunculus. A real, living homunculus, and there were even more of them down here.

 

The pain in his ribs was making itself known again, and he realized that he had no idea how much time had passed since he'd gone off by himself down the tunnel, but his mouth was dry with thirst and hunger was starting to make itself known in his belly.

 

Wetting his lips again, he lifted his head towards the women on the other side of the room.

 

"Private Muller... is there any drinking water down here?"

 

~~~~~

 

Nikita was having her own internal whirlwind when the Colonel spoke to her and even with the softness of his tone, years of military training and conditioning made her snap to alert immediately. "Sir!"

 

She paused, realizing she hadn't processed what he said, and sat quietly for a moment. She mentally kicked herself, as she no doubt looked completely glazed over as her head scrambled for his words. "Water."

 

That was it. She shook herself gently to reset, and looked over at him proper. "Yes Sir; by some miracle the water from the sink down here is perfectly drinkable."

 

She stared at him for a bit, and then stood. "Sorry, uhm, Sir. I'll get you a glass."

 

The "glasses" were just a small collection of mismatched mugs, cups, and a few jars. Apparently when Elain had asked for glasses early on, Greed had done it's best to oblige her, but it could only do so much.

 

Nikita grabbed the least chipped looking mug and filled it, making her way back to the Colonel and handing it to him.

 

"I'm sorry. About Greed." She mumbled, as if the tense moment with the creature had been her fault somehow. "It's never threatened one of us before. Ever."

 

Elain, clearly feeling slightly bolder, had moved more within the Colonel's line of sight and nodded in agreement- it was no wonder she seemed less suspicious; the Colonel was already coming across as more of a soft disposition than Stieg. It wasn't a wonder he had so many lovers- the man felt safe. That was an invaluable trait in a man, one that many lacked.

 

Stieg however, scoffed. "What's the matter, Muller? Now that it's finally bared its teeth properly at one of you, you suddenly don't feel all cuddly with it?"

 

Her brow furrowed as she went to shoot a glare at the partition window, but he wasn't looking through it.

 

"What are you talking about, you ass?"

 

His voice came again. "Don't act like you weren't showing concern over it."

 

She chewed her lip, getting more frustrated by the moment. She already had a lot on her mind, she didn't need Stieg trying to shake it out of her.

 

Nikita took a breath, and stabled herself. _He knows if he gets you riled enough you won't be able to explain yourself. He knows it'll make you look bad._

 

She glared at the partition, even if he couldn't see her. "You tried to kill it."

 

Her tone was cold and accusatory.

 

"In case you've forgotten, Muller, it’s keeping us trapped in the sewer via a pack of man eating monsters. And I'm not convinced it's not a maneater, too. You think you're its friend? You're a toy, Muller. We all are. Isn’t that what you said?"

 

He was just parroting at her what her own mind had been screaming for the past ten minutes but even then, she couldn't shake the genuine distress she felt over the attempted murder of Greed.

 

"We're going to have to kill it, you know that." His tone seemed to get softer for a moment, like he was talking to a stupid, distressed child about putting down a dog. "You think we're going to be able to get out without doing so? You think the Flame Alchemist, the Hero of Ishval" -godammit, he knew properly who the Colonel was now- "is just going to _talk_ it into releasing us? Because that's what he's famed for, of course."

 

Had he been peeking through the partition as usual she wouldn't have allowed herself, but she seemed to wilt under the words. Elain- bless Elain- actually came over, nearness to the Colonel be damned, and wrapped an arm around her in comfort.

 

~~~~~

 

Roy watched the exchange between the other captives without commenting, taking note of the dynamics between them. It was clear that Muller was under tremendous stress... and that she was more taxed by Twardy's behavior than she was even by Greed itself, although Greed clearly also did upset her.

 

His dislike of Twardy was growing by the minute. Although the man might not be wrong, he wasn't saying it to be helpful in any way. He was saying it to bully Muller, to unsettle her and keep her in some kind of check.

 

While Roy could admit these were intensely difficult circumstances, the man had shown his true colors under pressure when he'd turned on his own, consorted with the enemy, and then continued to try to psychologically undermine the only allies he had in this place.

 

Twardy was a failure of a superior officer. And more than that, if they were going to get out of here, his obvious maliciousness was going to be a problem.

 

"Sergeant Twardy, that's enough." His voice was sharp but matter of fact, a command that would be obeyed. He didn't elaborate, hoping that that would be enough to either shut the man up, or...

 

Or it would prompt him to spill out more information on their captor to Roy, since Roy hadn't missed the fact that Twardy had withheld vital details about Greed until prompted by having someone new to try to impress.

 

Roy needed to wring everything his could out of Twardy. Their lives surely depended on it, because if Greed could heal a slit throat, and Roy couldn't risk using his flame alchemy in such close quarters....

 

He wouldn't rule out an attempt to kill or at least incapacitate Greed, but he knew without a doubt that the consequences of a failed attempt were likely to be permanent, at least for him. And he wouldn't risk that unless there was no other possible option.

 

He craned his head -carefully, mindful of his smarting ribs- towards the partition to see what kind of reply Twardy would give him.

 

~~~~~

 

Leaning into Elain now, Nikita thought Stieg was being eerily silent in response to the Colonel's order. He hadn't said a thing for several moments; she wondered if his training or sense of respect for a superior officer really held so intensely true that he would close his trap immediately and permanently.

 

Unfortunately, such was not the case.

 

"You know, it's weird being ordered around after four months of nothing. Nikita certainly doesn't follow chain of command anymore with me involved, so it’s hard to decide if I should do the same for you."

 

His tone was sarcastic, but also had an air of genuine consideration.

 

There was a sound of shuffling, some laboured breathing, and his face appeared at the partition window- again, he looped an arm around one of the bars, as if to brace himself. Nikita's brow furrowed, as did Elain's when she looked at the other woman in silent conversation. It was a very, very strange quirk to be so consistent. Had his wheezing gotten so bad he was struggling with his balance?

 

Stieg spoke again, "You really are ever the gentleman, Colonel, as reputation holds true. You just have to leap in to save the ladies, even when you know I'm right."

 

He looked, Nikita noted, unsettlingly frantic.

 

"I know you think little of me; everyone in there does. I don't care. I'm right. That thing needs to die if we're going to get out of here, and Muller'd be doing herself and everyone else a favor if she'd get it through her head that bonding with monsters is a stupid idea."

 

Nikita looked ready to spit on him and-

 

-shockingly, Elain stood up, and actually _did_.

 

Stieg looked stunned. Nikita felt stunned.

 

Elain looked ready to fight him, and for the first, proper time, she spoke in the Colonel's presence. "You say that as if you don't sleep with him every chance you get like the flearidden, horny mutt you are, desperate to hump anything softer than your own hand."

 

Stieg stared.

 

He opened his mouth.

 

He closed it.

 

He opened it again.

 

The shock seemed to wear of, and some kind of unsettling madness seemed to shine in his expression for a moment. "You think the fact that I fuck it means I care about it?"

 

He sneered, every evil a man could express in that grin, and finished. "I tried to fuck _you_ , didn't I? I'd think you'd be able to understand that."

 

~~~~~

 

That was the final straw for Roy.

 

Anger had him pushing past the pain and on his feet, although it was awkward to try to support himself on the wall. And he knew, in the back of his mind that he would certainly pay for this later.

 

Getting himself turned around to face the partition and seeing, for the first time, the partly obscured but still obviously haggard face of the man behind it -and Twardy, from what he could see, looked pretty bad-, Roy drew himself up as well as he could, took a deep breath, and bellowed.

 

"SERGEANT TWARDY YOU WILL BE SILENT."

 

As he did so, he took a gamble, and raised the hand that was still gloved to the line of sight of the partition, fingers poised to snap.

 

~~~~~

 

The reaction was practically immediate.

 

Nikita watched Stieg go from the most deranged she'd seen since- she shuddered- the initial incident- to practically dropping away on the other side of the partition and out of sight.

 

It was dead silent for longer this time.

 

When sound came, it was quiet, and ignorable, but still clearly identifiable; made worse and more burdened by the wheezing, it was clear that Sergeant Twardy was laying in his cot, quietly sobbing to himself.

 

She'd have pitied him if he wasn't scum.

 

A glance over at Elain confirmed that she felt much the same- she even seemed victorious, some internal battle of hers having been won.

 

Nikita looked over at the Colonel, after Elain.

 

That had certainly been. Impressive.

 

"Sir, should you really be standing?"

 

~~~~~

 

Roy almost regretted having to yell at the man, once he heard the sobbing.

 

But one glance at the other two told him it had been the better decision. Muller looked openly relieved, and the woman Elaine looked pleased.

 

He was glad. It was unfortunate to have to do that, and he'd worried that the volume and suddenness might upset at least Elaine... But hopefully, it would make the point, and it wouldn't be necessary again.

 

He thought of the uncontrolled, twisted look of on Twardy's face, and nearly shook his head. That man was well past his own personal brink. At least it would calm him down for a while.

 

Still, the sobs were hard to listen to in the silence of the room.

 

Muller's voice broke him out of his thoughts.

 

He shouldn't be, and his body chose that moment to make that fact known as a vicious stab of pain had him sagging against the wall, suddenly, cursedly unsteady on his feet again.

 

~~~~~

 

Nikita moved faster than she realized she still could, and grabbed the Colonel by the shoulder, steadying him and helping ease him down to the ground. She sat with him for a moment, and made sure he was settled.

 

"Thank you, Sir. Typically he's easy enough to handle but I think we're all doing poorly today."

 

She paused, and almost laughed. "Except Elaine."

 

She glanced over at the other woman. "What the hell was that, Elaine?"

 

Elaine was suddenly mousey in her demeanor, and she looked down at the floor like a shy schoolgirl, but clearly seemed to be hiding a smile. It honestly made something in Nikita's heart feel more hopeful than realizing The Roy Mustang was with them earlier today- she'd been here the longest and she still had that fire waiting in her.

 

There was a sound, on the other side of the partition.

 

It took Nikita a moment to recognize it, but realization hit soon enough- it was a door opening, a sound she'd heard many times.

 

Stieg's sobbing stopped, and there was a soft sound like something being put down; she heard Stieg practically hiss at what was no doubt Greed bringing him food, and things went silent again before she heard the door close.

 

She nudged the Colonel. "We'll be getting food soon, Sir. Are you going to be able to handle another bought of it?" She stated, meaning Greed.

 

~~~~~

 

Roy was grateful for the helping hand down to the floor, and also grateful that he hadn't had to say anything first. Not because he didn't want to ask for help, but because he considered that it would be good to maintain a pretense of being more steady on his feet than he actually was, as far as Twardy was concerned.

 

If keeping the man cowed meant keeping him in check for longer, and preventing Roy from having to risk the delicate emotional balances of the other people in the cell, it was worth a try.

 

As Muller helped him resettle on the floor, he felt a wave of exhaustion finally hit him, followed immediately by strong frustration. Thoughts of everything he'd learning since waking up were racing through his mind, but his body was aching in even more places now that before. Distracted by... everything that had happened so far, he'd forgotten about the rest of the bruising, and now his ribs were punishing him for the stunt he'd pulled to get on his feet.

 

He'd need rest soon, regardless of how much he wanted to take the time to think.

 

Roy wasn't certain that he was ready, but he nodded anyway. He had to remain as composed as possible, even if his skin was prickling at the thought. At least the bit of adrenaline was clearing the fog from his mind.

 

Roy tried to sit up a straight as possible, and braced himself warily for another encounter with Greed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone my surgery went well! I’m healing up great and taking it easy. I genuinely love the OC’s I made for this RP, and they grew progressively more fleshed out as it went on. Nikita and Elain have more depth to come.  
> \- Chev
> 
> That's the chapter summary because our subtitle for this entire first section was literally "Shut Up Stieg". I'll share some of our other subtitles later, they're pretty good. Hope you enjoy!  
> \- Sandwich


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